Multimedia presentations that present graphic imagery, sometimes accompanied by audio content, include movies, video, television shows, games, etc. Problems arise when such presentations include content that may not be suitable for all content consumers: for example, a movie viewed by a group of family members may include portions of adult-oriented or violent content that is inappropriate for children within the viewing audience.
In order to assist content consumers in selecting multimedia presentation content that is appropriate for young children, as well as mature viewers who wish to avoid adult-oriented or violent content, content rating systems have been created that are used to inform consumers of attributes of content of multimedia presentations. For example, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) film rating system is used in the United States and its territories to rate a film's suitability for certain audiences based on its content, wherein the entirety of the content of a movie, game or other multimedia presentation is considered in assigning a rating that is selected from a scale of rating that include “G”, “PG”, “PG-13”, “R” and “NC-17.”
The MPAA “G” rating denotes that an entirety of the content of a movie, game or other multimedia presentation is suitable for “General Audiences,” inclusive of children, wherein no portions of the content are deemed as likely to offend parents for viewing by children. The “PG” or “Parental Guidance Suggested” indicates that some material may not be suitable for children, wherein parents urged to give “parental guidance” to any children who may view or otherwise consume this content, in order to assuage any fears engendered by tense or threatening situations, etc. PG-rated multimedia presentations may contain some material parents might not like for their young children.
The “PG-13” or “Parents Strongly Cautioned” rating is intended to convey that some portions of material content may be inappropriate for children under the age of 13; parents are urged to be cautious, as some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers, regardless of “parental guidance.” The “R” or “Restricted Under 17” rating requires an accompanying parent or adult guardian for the admission of children 17 or younger to a theatrical presentation in a commercial cinema, indicating that the multimedia presentation contains some adult material, and wherein parents are urged to learn more about the film before taking their young children with them. The “NC-17” or “Adults Only” rating conveys that no one 17 and under should view the multimedia content, wherein children are not admitted to commercial facilities presenting the content.
While such ratings are useful in selecting content appropriate for children, objectionable content may nonetheless occur within the safer, G and PG rated materials. For example, in one study the content of a set of 390 top-grossing movies released between 1985 and 2010 was analyzed for the presentation of sexual relations, violence, tobacco and alcohol use subject matter, wherein 90% of the movies within the set were determined to include at least one instance of a character engaging in “violence” (defined as intentional acts by an aggressor to make physical contact with another that has potential to inflict injury or harm, or is intended to cause harm, to coerce, or for fun). Thus, a movie that showed a character attempting to punch another character and missing would qualify as “violent,” even if no other instances of violence were shown. Under this definition, 88.6% of G-rated or PG-rated movies were determined to contain “scenes of violence.” Researchers within the study also coded films for their sexual content and portrayals of alcohol and tobacco use, in particular looking at the co-occurrence of such behaviors, and found that 77.4% of the set of movies that showed a main character committing an act of violence also included at least one other type of risky behavior with respect to sexual content portrayals and alcohol and tobacco use.